ABSTRACT
Leaders realize that the impact of synergy—how things work together—is far greater than the sum of the parts. As managers design and align systems with correct principles, they must shift from thinking purely analytically to thinking systemically. In the enterprise alignment workshop, the delegates are asked to explore the principle of Think Systemically in order to deepen their understanding. This chapter argues that thinking systemically is critical to successful improvement. It also argues that the main reason past improvement attempts have not been successful is because they did not think and act systemically and instead attempted to tackle opportunities at a local school level. The lack of Think Systemically can cause major issues, even where the objective appears straightforward. The chapter concludes with “system-wide improvement rather than focusing on school-by-school has the potential to dramatically improve educational outcomes.”
